What will they think of next?

The world of entertainment marketing takes a big step forward today with our announcement of the first "video in print" ad. That's right, CBS will present a video for its new fall programs in the fall review edition of Entertainment Weekly via a revolutionary new video chip. Here is a shortened version of CBS' official announcement:

CBS announced today an exciting new entertainment marketing breakthrough...the first use of video in a print advertisement. The revolutionary VIP (Video-in-Print) technology, to be packaged in a print ad spread in the fall TV preview issue of Entertainment Weekly, is the centerpiece of an exclusive partnership between CBS and PepsiCo's Pepsi Max designed to launch the Network's Monday night comedy lineup and new dramas.

For the very first time, readers can watch video content straight from the printed page via a paper-thin interactive video player--featuring five channels of CBS and Pepsi Max content--to be inserted into CBS/Pepsi Max ads in select copies of Entertainment Weekly's Fall TV preview issue (September 18 issue, on stands Friday, September 11). The newest of CBS's long list of marketing innovations, such as the celebrated promotional eggs, flash drives in print ads, and roof-top ads for airplane passengers, this VIP promotion provides an opportunity to sample CBS's new series in a remarkably unique and involving way.

As Entertainment Weekly readers flip to the "Monday to the Max" CBS/Pepsi Max promotional spread they will be greeted with a specially produced brief video featuring
"The Big Bang Theory's" Kaley Cuoco, Jim Parsons, and Johnny Galecki, in character as Penny, Sheldon, and Leonard. The trio explains how to use the VIP (Video in Print) player--while also chatting about Entertainment Weekly and exchanging some characteristically cutting remarks with each other.

After the introduction, readers can choose from the following five video menu options:

 "How I Met Your Mother" "The Bro Code" (a video montage of series character Barney Stinson's amusing codes of conduct for "Bros".)

 Two and a half minutes of "Two And A Half Men" plus "The Big Bang Theory" "Talk Nerdy to Me" (separate video compilations of humorous moments from both shows, the second of which features a musical homage to "The Big Bang Theory's male characters' endearingly geeky jargon and pastimes.)

The ground-breaking VIP player, developed and manufactured by Americhip, produces high quality video and audio--and is thin and durable enough to withstand the rigors of magazine binding and U.S. mail delivery.

"We're bubbling with excitement over CBS' partnership with Pepsi Max and our first-time ever use of video in a print ad," said George Schweitzer, president, CBS Marketing Group. "Pepsi Max is a great brand and a perfect fit for our Monday night comedies and new dramas. Since we're always thirsty for the newest marketing innovation, we're thrilled to be unveiling the inaugural use of an interactive Video in Print technology in Entertainment Weekly's popular fall TV preview issue. The best way to sample our terrific new programs is to see previews--and it's never been accomplished in a print ad...until now. EW is the ideal venue for this ground-breaking Video in Print ad, which is entertaining in its own right and is particularly well suited for their media-engaged readership."

"We're thrilled to launch our patented VIP technology with advertisers like CBS and Pepsi,"says Americhip CEO Tim Clegg. "This is exactly the type of application we had in mind when we developed this technology."

Discuss: What will they think of next?

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